Not furry, but we like them anyway.
Diamond Goby
Valenciennea puellaris
Also called Orange-spotted sleeper goby, Maiden goby, Orange-dashed goby, Diamond watchman goby, Orangespotted glidergoby
From Indo-Pacific, from the Red Sea east to Samoa, north to southern Japan and south to the Great Barrier Reef and New Caledonia; sandy areas of clear lagoons and seaward reefs at about 2 to 84 m12
At a glance the quick version
Looks how to spot one
Elongated sleeper goby
A long, slender sand-dwelling goby with a pearly white body sprinkled with small orange dashes and diamond-shaped spots. It rests on the bottom between short bursts of digging and sifting.32
Personality what they are like
A calm, docile bottom dweller that seldom bothers other fish. It can be shy at first and grows bolder once settled. In smaller tanks it may squabble with other gobies, blennies or dartfish.3
Daily activity how busy a day looks
Busy at the bottom of the tank all day, scooping up mouthfuls of sand and filtering them for food, and digging burrows under rubble.321
Grooming and care the hands-on bits
Easy care. It is a known jumper, so a tight lid is needed. Its constant sand sifting helps stop detritus building up, but it needs a mature tank with a well-populated sand bed to forage in.3
Home where they are happiest
A marine aquarium of at least about 115 litres (30 US gallons) with a deep, fine sand bed and rubble or rock to burrow beneath, plus a secure lid. In the wild it lives in tropical water of roughly 22 to 26 C. Reef safe.31
Food basics what goes in the bowl
A carnivore. Wild fish eat zooplankton and small dead animals sifted from the sand. In tanks feed frozen or live mysis and enriched brine shrimp once or twice a day.23
Company who they like around
Adults pair up for life and share a burrow. Keep singly or as a mated pair rather than with several of their own kind.13
The story where it all began
Described by the Japanese ichthyologist Tomiyama in 1956 under the name Eleotriodes puellaris. It later moved to the genus Valenciennea and became a common sand-sifting goby in the reef aquarium hobby.21
Fun facts for the dinner table
- 1
Diamond goby pairs are monogamous and share a home burrow dug a few centimetres down under rubble or dark volcanic sand.1
- 2
It feeds by taking mouthfuls of sand and sifting out tiny animals, which is why aquarists value it as a living sand cleaner.3
- 3
It has been recorded as deep as 84 m, though most live between 10 and 30 m.1
- 4
Several of its common names, such as orange-dashed goby and orange-spotted sleeper goby, describe the bright orange markings on its pale body.2
Recognised by the official bits
- IUCN Red List
- Least Concern (assessed 11 March 2015)1
- Taxonomy
- Described by Tomiyama in 1956 as Eleotriodes puellaris2
- Trade name note
- In the hobby the name diamond goby is also applied to the related Valenciennea schlieweni3
The care rhythm Furry Diary remembers it for you
A typical home-care rhythm for a Diamond Goby. It is our own starting plan, not a vet's advice, and you can change every line in the app.
- FeedingSmall amounts once or twice a dayevery day
- Temperature checkevery day
- Salinity checkevery week
- Top-upTop up evaporation with fresh RO water, not salt waterevery day
- Water testevery week
- Water changeAbout 10 to 20% of the waterevery 2 weeks
- Glass cleanevery week
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Where this comes from
Every breed page shows where each fact comes from. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are pet people, not a science magazine. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.
- FishBase: Valenciennea puellaris fishbase.seused for range, size, depth, pairs and burrows, IUCN
- Wikipedia: Valenciennea puellaris en.wikipedia.orgused for names, describer, diet, habitat
- Saltwaterfish.com: Diamond Goby saltwaterfish.comused for aquarium care, tank size, appearance, diet, lifespan
Checked 2026-09-30. Text is written in our own words from these sources.